Shall I get my colours 'done'?

[Whichseason]

I have name changed so I can include my location to ask for recommendations.

I feel stuck in a style rut, hate shopping and not feeling good about my clothes. I am thinking of have my colours and body shape done.

I am confused about house of colour/colour me beautiful/john lewis/kettle well colours. I have heard that colour me beautiful are not as good but their web site is better and their prices are clearly displayed. Kettle well is near me but I don't think they do body shape. Can anybody recommend someone or offer advice? I live in Newcastle.

[UmiSays]

I got them done last year with HoC.

I found the session a bit cringey and overwhelming, and it took me almost a year to decide to start buying some bits in 'my' colours (I was skint anyway...and a bit in denial).

I started very tentatively, with buying a few items in the safest colours in 'my' palette (navy, white) and then ramped it up a bit, started experimenting with the brighter colours and with make up.

It has been absolutely revolutionary for me, I have to say!

I have started to build a wardrobe of separates that all work with each other. I dont feel stressed trying to work out what goes with what anymore.

It also makes shopping SO much easier. I can dismiss whole rails of stuff because I now know what colours definitely DO NOT work for me, as well as what colours look good.

I have a better instinct now. I can determine what is a cool or warm shade of a oarticular colour and then know if it is likely to look good on me (I'm a very cool winter).

It has been expensive, I'll be honest. I had to chuck out most of my wardrobe eventually, because the more you buy in your colours, the more you see how shit the other stuff looks on you. But I am SO glad I did it and wish I had done it years ago.

[BL00CowWonders]

Agree 100% with Umi ^

I've still got some pre-colours day clothes but I know I just look so much better in the right clothes. I don't like shopping at all and this just makes my life so much simpler.

[Whichseason]

Thank you. I have decided to definitely get it done.

I just need to decide who with now. Has anybody tried kettlewell for colour analysis

[Tequilashotfor1]

Ooooooh what's is this wizardry? I need an intervention!

[Whichseason]

Google colour me beautiful and their website explain it. However most recommendations at for house of colour.

The consultants are self employed and there are not many near me.

Does in happen in the consultants home usually?

[LaurieLarx]

Haven't heard of Kettlewell, but I did Colour Me Beautiful about 10 years ago - kind of as a favour to a friend of a friend, but I was curious too. There were four of us, and we each spent an hour or so sitting facing a mirror and having different-coloured scarves whisked round our necks. The ones that looked nicest went to make up our colour palette - spring, summer, deep summer, and other categories.

No massive surprises, but we came away with a personalised book of swatches that has actually been useful in picking colours, and saved me from some expensive mistakes. I lost this book (naturally) but can still remember most of the colours.

One thing was, the adviser told me I was more a 'silver' than a 'gold' person, which put me off wearing gold jewellery for years. Now I'm older I don't give a stuff and love wearing gold :)

[Dansak]

I had it done about 10 years ago by an independent style consultant (try googling that and your area).

It has honestly been the best money I have ever spent. Its helped me shop smarter, can easily glance around for my colours, helped me be braver in colours to wear together and I get lots more compliments than I used to. I feel better knowing I'm wearing what suits me. Yes some of it is obvious but lots, not so.

It was a great confidence booster.

[Tequilashotfor1]

Off to Google !!

[Whichseason]

Ok, I think kettlewell use house of colour trained stylist but they also sell clothes in different ranges.

I have found and independent stylist as well as kettlewell/house of colour and will email them both to try and find out more.

Now I just need to decide which service to go for. I think it depends on how much I can take it at once and how much I am willing to spend.

[hopelesslydevotedtoGu]

What kind of prices do they charge?

[Dansak]

I paid £100 nearly 10 years ago. That included full colour analysis, swatch book, make up lesson and style for my shape tips.

[wohmum]

I had mine done with House of Colour, and they clearly promote Kettlewell colours , and you get a % off kettlewell clothes with your consultants code

I am really pleased I did mine, I now wear much more colourful clothes and have started to build a mix of clothes that all go together - it definitely makes shopping easier!

[wohmum]

Mine was about £110 I think, but just colours, and swatch, not the stake session, although I am thinking of doing that too

[PetiteBateau]

What is the science behind this?!! It all sounds crackers to me

[PetiteBateau]

Colour analysis I mean

[Tequilashotfor1]

On pintrest I'm light spring!

[UmiSays]

The 'science' is just looking at your skin tone and eye colour, really. But they take it to extremes. They do this laborious thing of holding up swatches of very slightly different shades of each colour (e.g. five different shades of red) to your face for what seems like eternity to get the EXACT palette of colours that suits you. You can pretty much wear any colour afterwards, but find the shades of each colour that suit you.

It is some sort of voodoo, I swear.

You start to see how badly some colours drain your face and make you look tired/old. There are some coours (colours that i wore a lot, like caramel and black) that literally make me look ill. And sme (for me, electric blue, jewel colours) that take years off me when they are close to my face (so in a top, scarf, necklace etc). I just didn't see it before. Its enlightening

I was completely unconvinced beforehand, I swear. The colour analysis was a birthday present. But by GOD, it works.

[hopelesslydevotedtoGu]

Were there any surprises though? I wear colour often already, would there be likely to be any surprises?

[hopelesslydevotedtoGu]

By surprises I mean colours that I don't already pick myself. Not people jumping out of cakes. It has Been a long day, I'm not articulating myself v well!

[hopelesslydevotedtoGu]

How easy is it to find the right shades after, Umi?

[IfYoureHappyAndYouKnowIt]

Best to go to House Of Colour probably tbh. Well worth the money.

[PretzelPrincess]

OP who have you found in Newcastle? I'm up north too and have been thinking about getting his done.

[UmiSays]

hopelessly - Well for me it was all a surprise, but also a sort of re-education. I'd been hiding in black and various shades of beige and brown for YEARS. I was a complete colour-phobe. I sort of vaguely thought some sort of blue might suit me, as I have blue eyes and my nan used to say blue suited me . But I had no idea why some blues (warm or muted) looked shit and some (cool, bright, deep) looked better. And some some of the particular shades of certain colours were a surprise and a half - never in a million years would've worn them.

It took about six months to start being able to confidently walk into a shop and find colours that suit me without too much fuss. I don't cary the colour swatch they give you with me at all now. I can just spot the colours that are my 'top' colours and always look good a mile off, and then with the rest of the stock in a shop, if I see something that is a nice shape or fabric in a particular colour that I know is not one of my absolute best colours (a yellow or a pink, for example) I at least know which shades are going to look better on me pretty much by eye now - so, if a colour is warm or soft or muted it definitely will NOT suit me, but a cool/deep shade of the same colour made look good.

It gets easier.

[UmiSays]

*may look good. It HAS been a long day and i am on my second glass of vino, sorry

[Whichseason]

Nichola English - I have just looked at her website.

Kettlewell seem to have a house of colour stylist based in Gosforth.

There are other people North but these are the closest to me.